Beginner 1/2 Ironman Plan Group (Page 86)

Hey All - Well it is over and boy what an experience it was.  They day started off warm and humid and only got sunnier.  Water temp 82 (no wetsuits), air temp 78/90% humidity when my wave went off and 87/70% humidity and sunny throughout the run.  I knew the race would not be wetsuit legal at least 10 days in advance so I was able to get my mind around it.  Also made the call early on to swim in tri shorts and don a shirt in T1.  After racking the bike on Saturday, I was able to get a practice swim in the Choptank.  Just did 20 minutes or so at  a very easy pace - huge confidence builder as I never swam in brackish water and was worried about it being too salty. 

Pre-race meal consisted of whole grain bread and almond butter, 2 bananas about 90 mins apart, sipped a Gatoradae during the early a.m. and an Accelerade gel 10 mins before the swim.

My goal for the swim was to be comfortable and from the get go I felt great.  The course was very laid out and there was not much contact. Found some feet to follow for various parts and only had problems getting around some of the slower folks from the early waves.  Coming back in the sun was in my eyes but I had mirrored googles and even though I had to fight the current I was able to pick up speed.  Swim split was slower than I would have liked (47'), but I felt great and did not experience any cramping.

T1 went well, stepped into the tri top which made it a lot easier to get on when you are wet. Headed out on the bike and did some small ring work to find my legs.  On the bike I had a 2 hour bottle of Perpetuem (frozen but thawed), a bottle of H20 and gatorade.  The course was flat which is challenge in that your legs get very little rest.  After 10 mins I found my legs and just hammered the bike.  Held cadence of 82-85 consistently and averaged 21 mph.  Since this was an IM sponsored event with Kona slot up for grabs, the race marshalls were out in force and saw lots of penalties being assessed.  Know the rules before you race would be my advice.

After a great bike I started to worry that I may have pushed it too hard as the full impact of the heat was being felt.  Going into T2 I made the decision to dunk my race hat in my ice cooler and to bring with me wet a small tool and keep it on my neck to deal with the heat.  This caused my T2 to be longer than I wanted, but as I ran out saw my wife kids and stopped to give them a big kiss.

Almost immediately I knew I was in trouble - the legs weren't there and I had 13.1 miles in front of me.  In the first mile I stopped at  a port o potty for a respite and caught Mirinda Carfrae hauling a$$ for her win.  I stopped at each rest stop which were so excellently supported I can't even say.  The sequence went - Ice water over the head, ice water sipped then down the back, gatorade drank and then wrapped more ice in a tool around the neck (until mile 7 when I dumped the towel and went into pure survival mode). 

This was the single hardest run I ever experienced - racing in the heat and humidity is like nothing else and the entire run was in the exposed beating sun.  I had never had to walk before but I had nothing in the legs and they started to seize up between miles 4 & 5.  All I said to myself was "get me to the turnaround" and after that it was counting some very slow miles (just like sheep).  Funny thing was that my heart rate stayed in Z2 the whole time; problem was that my legs just couldn't take me faster.

Made it across the finish line in 5:39 (goal was sub 6:00; strech goal was 5:30) and was very happy with my time.  Found the family, knees buckled and I almost fell to the ground.  After some fluid replacement, I was back to the living.  Never came close to bonking, but many others did.  The finish line looked like a M*A*S*H unit, bodies strewn everywhere.

In retrospect, there are things I would have done differently, but you can only race as conditions allow. There were dark times on the run, but I never thought once about a DNF.  I had trained hard for the race and knew that I was ready.  With experience comes knowledge and next time (there WILL be a next time) I will learn from my mistakes.  For now, I am relishing in my accomplishment and humbled to think that 1 year ago I had yet to complete my first sprint tri. 

Awsome job Joe! 5:39 is great given the conditions you described. I'm praying for an early fall here in MI so my August race isn't as hot as yours.

YOU DID IT!!! You are 70.3 worthy (insert Wayne's World guitar music here).

I told my wife last night that the swim and bike are just warm ups for the real race that starts heading out of T2. It sounds like your mental toughness is what carried you through the run yesterday. You must feel awesome with your effort!

Nice job and congrats to you and the family :-)

Joe, awesome job!  I've always heard Eagleman had tough swims and tougher runs.  That's an awesome time!

Congratulations!

Good job Joe!!!  Great time even with the tough time you went through on the run.  I was secretly routing for you to be under 5:30 since your training posts in this thread are great and somewhat motivating.  I always tell myself when I read your posts that maybe I can be as fast as this guy

Either way good job and what a way to say goodbye to your HIM cherry!!

Joe that is an awesome time. Sounds like there were some tough conditions there yesterday. Great job on your race!

I need to stop checking the weather for this weekend. Today they are calling for a high of 95 degrees on Sunday.

Taper week is turning into a contest to see how many chores I can get done around the house. Today = clean the garage. I don't feel very rested LOL .

Joe - YES! Full Ironman in 2012 is perfect.....especially on the heels of your Nov. Marathon. Nothin like one day's rest to get the motivation going in the right direction!

Arkmann - I know I said it before, but your run splits are GREAT! How do you do it? Are you a runner by trade, or is it new to you? I'm jealous :-)

I experienced what REALLY fast runners look like during my race on Sunday. I was plodding along on my first lap and this guy goes flying past me at what turned out to be about a 5:45 minute pace - he won the race. He was a machine. His running looked effortless, but his strides were amazing, not to mention the definition in his legs - OMG! He was in bikinin bottoms and was chisiled to the max. A minute or two later, here comes this skinny as rhinny 18 year old flying past me in chase. THE KID WASN'T EVEN BREATHING HARD? He blew through the aid station like it was just part of the scenery, not even a glance. They both passed me again on their way back in and I was just as amazed the second time by.

I agree with DV's post for 2012 IM!  I myself is contemplating the same thing.  I'll probably do a full mary sometime in Jan/Feb to take advantage of the cool weather and see if I'm up for IM after that.

Thanks for the compliment DV.  I wish I was a runner by trade but all 3 sports are new to me.  I started running in Oct 2009 and my training was not structured at all.  Structured tri training started 7 months ago.  I think my running fitness improvement materialized during the past 4 weeks of speed training.  I concentrated on speed and that's what I got on race day.  I never expected almost a minute per mile improvement on the pace though! One of the guys here on this thread got me into training for speed when he posted that he gained more improvement on his run by doing more speed work while at the same time lowering running hours.  I did it and it worked for me too.  I'll quote him once I remember him.

Also, here's my approach to training and my capabilities.  People have told me the following: I have a slowish swim 2:04/100m, solid bike, and I just found out I had a strong run. I'm putting more effort on the run since I think that's where most leads are gained or lost, busting my balls on the bike through interval training, and I'm just getting by in swimming.  Looks like it's working for me.

I also experienced the same run instance during my OLY run on Saturday.  I though I was doing great because nobody was passing me and I was catching up to everyone who was in front of me.  Then there's this lanky 18 year old looking guy who just goes past me.  Like your guy, he looked like he wasn't even breaking a sweat.  He looked like he's a member of a cross country team with his knee high socks and New Balance shoes.  I though about pacing with him but who am I kidding.  He was probably doing 6min/mile!!!  Tall and lanky!

I'd love to hear what you did for your speedwork.

I felt like a full time meteorologist last week and was looking at no less than 4 different weather reports - each of which changed multiple times during the day and all of which were completely wrong!!!  If it is that hot, then it will be a different race than you expected and planned for.  Stay flexible and race the conditions as they are presented.  While they say nothing new on race day, I'm not sure that takes into account weather anamolies.   Consider your hydration plans carefully and up the electrolytes.  I took a couple of Endurolytes as the cramps started to come on, but it was probably too late at that point. 

Hang in there through the taper week (which just sucks).  You'll do great!

Ha, thanks Joe. Glad to know someone can relate . I keep reminding myself that there will be aide stations and I can ice myself down. I've never been able to do that in my training runs so that should help right? I also just heard that the run is not on the asphalt road but on a rock road. That is good and bad, good that it might not be as hot, bad that it is not fun to run on rocks.

My race plan has been to take it easy on the bike so I can have some legs left for running. Now I'm thinking I might as well cook the bike because if it's 95 degrees outside I'll be walking anyway!!

I attempted to complete the IMKs 70.3 this past Sunday.  I say attempt because I missed the swim cutoff.  My training did not include enough open water swims and I paid for it.  The water was pretty choppy and I drank a lot of lake water.  I made the turn around about when I expected, but it was all downhill from there.   I just couldn't coordinate my breathing with the waves.  I was pulled from the water about 250m from shore.  I never questioned my training or even thought that missing the swim cutoff was a possibility.

My takeaway:  I need to find a lake and make time for more open water swim training.  I also need to find a swim coach. 

I cannot express my appreciation for the volunteers on the swim course.  Not only did they look out for me, they did the best to encourage me to keep the course and not give up.

Sorry to hear about your swim, keep smilling and training and you will get the next one!!!

Ok - so I'm just throwing this out there. I know you did all kinds of training to get ready for your race. I know you can do this distance. There is a HIM in Effingham IL on Sunday. Do you feel like trying again? The lake will be calm - I am fairly certain of that. It is not a big WTC event or anything. Just a small local race, small field, I'll be there. It is the race I have been training for. I can talk to the RD for you if reg is closed. He is a friend of mine.

I know you can do this.

That is exactly what one of my training buddies recommended.  I wish I could, but it just isn't in the budget right now.  I also saw that there is a HIM at nearby Keyesport, IL (Lake Carlyle) in August.  I will have to find something. 

Thank you for the encouragement.  I am really struggling with the post race blues right now.

Best thing to do is as fast as you can, find a way to do an OW swim with company; either in a race, with friends or in a swim group. You've gotta get back out there and prove to yourself that your experience was an isolated event that isn't the norm.

Sounds like you gave it a good effort despite your difficulties. I've seen a number of people swim out 100 or so, freak out, and turn around and come back in. You stuck with it until race officials called time on you. That's actually an accomplishment in my mind!

Keep at it and let us know how things turn out.

Darn, I figured it was a long shot. It is not the easiest thing to coordinate a full day like that either.

Ok - so now you brush yourself off and get back to the drawing board. That race does not define you. Don't hang on to the negative feelings too long. Take a look back at your training log and all the hard work you did. That is who you are. I recite this quote to myself all the time "Even on my weakest days, I get a little bit stronger."

Good luck!

Wouldn't recommend this as a strategy unless you are willing to accept a DNF.  While I too thought walking was always an option, I witnessed so many folks who were so deep in the hurt locker that walking was no longer an option.  Pushing yourself to your limits is why we all do this thing, going beyond one's limits is a pretty scary place.  Race smart and you'll do great and have an enjoyable race.  We're all pulling for you!!!

Don't worry - I was joking. I'm not really going to do that . Just finish is my goal. My motto for race day is Keep Moving Forward - one way or another. Thanks Joe!

The recent thread about learning to suffer is an interesting read. On one hand, "just finishing" might be the right strategy. On the other hand, and for me, I think there's something to be said for setting a realistic time goal and then digging deep to reach that goal during the race. Finishing is a foregone conclusion .... especially at this distance given our training. I think any of us who make it through training the HIM plan, can pretty much assure a finish from an endurance standpoint. Maybe we have to walk some during the run or go slower than anticipated, but finishing itself isn't really a motivator to go fast. I want to go fast - my fast. I'll know what I'm capable of as the training progresses, and will then set a reasonable (but fast) time goal based on race conditions. I haven't yet learned to just go as hard as I can, so I need some external motivator, like time, to keep me mentally strong when it hurts.

So what I'm saying is set a goal for yourself .... a reasonablly fasy goal .... and then go out there on race day and try to get it. If you don't reach the time goal, no big deal .... but it's a race. Race it!